Unique Decorating Tips For Fall

Use fall-inspired home decorating tips to add curb appeal and get your house noticed this season.

Fall brings a plethora of color as the leaves start morphing into brilliant shades of yellow, orange and red, painting the trees and ground in a blanket of Autumn splendor. These changes evoke the upcoming holidays, and bringing a splash of fall colors and seasonal items into your home can get it, and you, into a festive mood. Find inspiration with popular themes that utilize fall foliage, pine cones, pumpkins and gourds to add warmth and beauty indoors, and out, with these home decorating ideas.

Fall Into Color

An excellent way to dress your home for fall is utilizing traditional colors inspired by autumnal hues throughout your decorating theme. This includes using actual fall foliage, especially leaves, flowers and gourds for dazzling color in any display. Home decorating ideas with simple additions of these various elements can bring a touch of fall to your foyer, mantel, dining room table or any space in your home.

Start by gathering a colorful assortment of leaves. Attach them to a rope using floral wire for a seasonal garland that's perfect around a doorway or mantel. You can also scatter these leaves around fall foliage arrangements and tablescapes to give foyers and other areas a genuine fall feel. Arrange branches of leaves in foliage arrangements similar to floral arrangements, which are grouped by color and size. For a creative centerpiece, large, fiery red maple leaves offer a stunning focal point when surrounded by an array of seasonal gourds, potted plants and loose leaves of varying colors, textures and sizes.

Brown, which is also a color reminiscent of fall, makes an excellent background color for more vibrant displays of yellow, orange and red. If you're short on time, take an easy, quick approach to decorating. Such as, a random scattering of colorful leaves and/or mini pumpkins on a side table in a carefree arrangement that adds a casual touch to your seasonal decor.

Pumpkins On Parade

Pumpkins and gourds inspire fun fall decorations. Halloween pumpkins are most often carved into jack-o'-lanterns, but your carving creations don't have to stop there. Try home decorating ideas that put your pumpkins on parade by carving out the insides and filling the empty shells with unique elements. Try a pumpkin votive or a "mumkin" for something really eye-catching this Autumn.

Mini Pumpkin Votive - Carve circles out of the middle of miniature pumpkins. Circles should be slightly larger than a tea light candle, which you'll place inside each mini pumpkin votive. Scatter these around your home for a remarkable fall glow. You can also use votive candles in pumpkins that are too large for tea lights, but take care where they're placed, to avoid fire hazards.

Mumkins - These are a fun, festive combination of pumpkins and mums. Carve out the center of your pumpkins, remove the insides and turn it into a flower planter to hold varying shades of mums for a spectacular display on your front porch, patio or deck. To keep your pumpkins from rotting quicker, leave mums inside their pots instead of placing soil directly inside the pumpkin and always take your flowers out for watering. For cute mumkin sidekicks, you can do something similar with miniature pumpkins or smaller gourds and pansies.

Fall-Inspired Curb Appeal

Home decorating ideas for fall shouldn't stop with bringing Autumn's splendor indoors. Use fall-inspired home decorating tips to add curb appeal and get your house noticed this season. If your house is currently on the market, grab potential buyer's attention with imaginative displays that can either highlight or replace traditional scarecrow and straw bales scenes.

Start by decorating your front door. Creating fall-inspired wreaths are another great use for mini pumpkins and leaves, with white pumpkins often adding a more elegant twist to your creation. Your front door and porch railings are also potential spots for your leaf garlands with strategically placed pinecones in the mix for more pop.

Around your front door and porch, pair pumpkins with pots of kale for a warm, welcoming look. For stunning displays, add pots of mums that bloom whether displayed in sun or shade. Sandwich various-sized pumpkins between bay wreaths and tuck in cool-weather edibles, such as flowering cabbage, for a topiary with a distinctive twist. If you have stairs leading up to your entry, artfully stagger similar elements all the way down your front steps for an inviting trail to your door bell.

When contemplating fall home decorating ideas, avoid being too holiday specific. By focusing on the season instead of the occasion, you can get the most bang for your decorating buck with decor that's appropriate for Halloween, Thanksgiving and beyond.